SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) — Governor J.B. Pritzker reiterated his call for Sheriff Jack Campbell to resign at the Illinois State Fair this afternoon. This came after a news conference from Pritzker Wednesday morning and a subsequent statement from Campbell.

In the statement, Campbell claimed that this was only adding fuel to the fire and ruining attitudes in Sangamon County. "Calls for my resignation are nothing more than political maneuvering during a tragic event and only hurt the good citizens of Sangamon County," stated Campbell.

Pritzker also admonished Campbell for not meeting with the Massey family yet. "It's been a month. We should have seen already a meeting with the Massey family. If he's reached out, he hasn't done a very good job. Because the Massey family hasn't had the meeting that they've asked for."

However, Campbell said that he has reached out multiple times, to no avail. "On four separate occasions, I have requested to meet with the Massey family through intermediaries designated by the family. My requests have been rejected or not accepted. I am still willing to meet with the family," stated Campbell.

Pritzker also condemned Campbell's hiring of Grayson, saying there have been multiple questions left unanswered. "I ask the question simply... what did the sheriff know about his background? Why didn't he do more work on his background before hiring him?" Pritzker also said that it would have been in Campbell's interest to reach out to Grayson's former employers to learn more about his prior resignations. "The sheriff — who is the hiring leader — could have made calls to those departments and talked to the chiefs of those departments to get insight into the person that he was hiring." said Pritzker "He could have taken more action as the person who was responsible for hiring."

Campbell said that the Sheriff's Office is open to changing their hiring policies. However, he said that the issues with the current policies are not his responsibility to fix, but the state's. "We have used a process that we believe was consistent with statewide standards. If these standards are deficient, we would advocate a change at all necessary levels."

Yet, Pritzker said that it was the responsibility of the Sheriff's Office to make the necessary policy changes to improve the hiring process. "The state shouldn't have to set policy for him to hire to to do background checks. Not just background checks, but reference calls on the people that they're hiring," said Pritzker.

Campbell reiterated in his written statement that he would work alongside the state to make statewide changes in hiring policies. "I am committed to working with our community and elected leaders to improve not only the Sheriff’s Office but also hiring standards on a statewide level to prevent a state agency from certifying a similar law enforcement officer six different times in the future." 

Campbell has maintained that he will not resign and that he will uphold his responsibility as Sheriff to lift up his community during a difficult time. 

On Wednesday night, Sangamon County Democratic Chair Bill Houlihan released this statement:

"As a vital first step towards reforming the tragically broken culture within the Sangamon County Sheriff's Department, the Sangamon County Democratic Party calls on Sheriff Jack Campbell and his senior leadership team to resign effective immediately. For decades the unspoken practice of "legacy hires" and "go along to get along" have permeated throughout the County Building. Jack Campbell's resignation would only be a bandaid on the deep cut the Sheriff's Department has inflicted upon our community. Only with entirely new leadership can the Sangamon County Sheriff's Department begin the essential work of restoring the public's trust and serving all members of our community."

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